QUADRE's TuesdayAt2 is dedicated to sharing "tidbits" concerning the music world from the perspective of executive director, Daniel Wood. QUADRE-The Voice of Four Horns is a group of 4 solo French horn artists that provide concert presentations, interactive educational outreach, lectures and workshops each season.

Tuesday, April 25, 2006

A HORNS RANGEAn old joke - A composer asks a music teacher what the range of the horn is. The music teacher replies, About 60 feet if you have a good arm. Seriously, the horn has a four octave range and then some. Some professionals even have a five octave range. That is 61 notes!! This is one of the reasons the horn quartet genre works so well. We are capable of playing in the range of a soprano and a bass.

BOARD PERKSThe primary duty of a board of directors is to maintain fiduciary responsibility for the organization. Being focused on long term goals for the most part (while staff focus on short term duties), board members are keenly aware and in tune with the resources of an organization. They help prevent an organization from getting in trouble financially and create a plan for long-term growth and security. The next board meeting on May 11 in Foster City will focus on next years budget with this in mind.

Tuesday, April 18, 2006

MUSIC PUBLISHINGEvery piece on Citrus is going to be published by Emerson Horn Editions based in Colorado over the next two years. To get a work published you have to proofread the heck out of it. Not only are you looking for spelling mistakes, but every single dot, line, and letter have to be in the right place. Often the music that QUADRE plays in performance is readable by us, but it is not in state where it can be published yet. We often make all sort of corrections and because we know or are the composer, there is always someone listening for mistakes. Once you get something published, you have to leave that decision up to whomever purchases your music.

Thank you so much for the copy of your newest CD, Citrus. It is an excellent disc, and clearly shows how much your ensemble has grown over the past decade. I was so impressed by the playing throughout the group, and I think your (Daniel's) composition was great, too.Michael Thornton, COLORADO SYMPHONY, Principal Horn

I just wanted to write to tell you that I've been listening to the QUADRE CD with great pleasure. What a beautiful program, and fantastic playing. Well-recorded, too. I'm really impressed, and I'm very pleased that ACF could play a small part in bringing this to the world.Tod Brody, AMERICAN COMPOSERS FORUM, Flute Player

Your CD is great. The level of virtuosity caught me offguard. You guys are playing your asses off. Holy cow. Nice writing too Daniel!! I heard echoes of all kinds of things I like, plus a lot thatI didn't expect in a score for four horns. Nimble is right.Todd Sickafoose, TODD SICKAFOOSE GROUP, Jazz Composer & Bass Player

Tuesday, April 11, 2006

GOING TO A SYMPHONY CONCERTFrom: John Steinmetz (bassoon player in LA; past mentor for QUADRE)[mailto:steinmetz.mail@gmail.com] A wonderful essay by Alex Shapiro (composer in Los Angeles) about bringing newcomers to symphony concerts. Scroll down after hitting the link.

SHOWCASESDid you know that QUADRE applies for four showcases every year. It is a competitive process to see whether you can get a chance to perform at a booking conference. If you're one of the lucky ones selected, you still have to pay for the privilege. It usually costs between $500-650. You also have to have a booth at the conference - another $500-650. Not to mention the cost for flying all the artists to the conference as well as paying for hotel, ground transportation, and food. The opportunity to perform for presenters can be great, but you better have some disposable income ready.

Links

Organization Profile

QUADRE is a group of four solo French horn artists that provide concert presentations, interactive educational outreach, lectures and workshops each season. Since 1998, the ensemble’s mission is to make new music accessible, engaging and enjoyable for their audiences.